Forbidden, yet seldom forbidding, Appl’s exquisitely cultivated fruits are ripe for plucking, and deserve to be consumed with unalloyed relish!

Appl’s voice is beautiful, his approach sensitive, and Baillieu is an attentive and supportive accompanist

It works because of the intimacy of the performers (in a warmly confiding acoustic) and the palpable sense that the pair are in sync...It’s all delivered with wit, intelligence and sophistication, and the thematic joins don’t feel forced despite the breadth of the material.

This eclectic and imaginative recital of songs exploring the ideas of temptation and taboo is probably the German baritone's finest recording to date. It's great to hear him letting his hair down in songs like Poulenc's 'Couplets bachiques' and a delicious number from Schoenberg's Brettl-Lieder, with other highlights including a particularly biting 'Heidenröslein' and a wistful, melancholy take on the popular torch-song 'Just A Gigolo'.

Forbidden Fruit is chronologically all over the place, which keeps you on your toes and points to the tussel between base desires and romantic ideals. The German baritone Benjamin Appl navigates between Schubert, Weill, Debussy, Hahn, Fanny Mendelssohn and more with ease, while the pianist James Baillieu has a crystal clear and light of touch.

It’s the gentler, airier numbers that show Appl at his considerable best, sustaining intensity even when spinning the tiniest thread of sound, his voice all velvet smoothness...Baillieu’s responsive, detailed piano playing supports him at every turn in bringing these songs to life.

An extraordinary collection of music and of course fabulously performed.